We know that many members of the Kol Ami community use Amazon.com for their online shopping — not only for books, but for a wide variety of other items, including electronics, housewares, clothing, etc. We have now created a way for you to help Kol Ami whenever you shop at Amazon (with no additional cost to you).

Congregation Kol Ami has enrolled in the Amazon Associates program whereby Amazon pays us approximately 5% of the purchase price of any item purchased at Amazon, provided that the purchaser enters Amazon through the link on our website (the actual percentage we receive generally ranges between 4% and 6% of the purchase price, depending on the particular item and the number of purchases made through our site each month). There is no additional cost to you as a purchaser when you use the Amazon link on our website — you pay the same Amazon price regardless of how you reach Amazon’s site. If you shop online at Amazon, you can continue to do so and help support Congregation Kol Ami at the same time.

Please note that the only way Kol Ami receives a percentage from your Amazon purchases is if you enter Amazon directly from the Amazon link on the Kol Ami website, and then make your purchase before leaving the Amazon site during that visit. If you do leave the Amazon site and later want to return to make your purchase, it is necessary to return to the Amazon site via the Kol Ami website’s link. So, in short, be sure that whenever you plan to go to the Amazon site, you go there via the link on Kol Ami website (rather than going there directly).

You may use either the Amazon link near the top of this page or the Amazon link in the left column of the Kol Ami home page (you might have to scroll down a bit on the Kol Ami home page to see the link). Once you enter the Amazon site via our link, your shopping experience there will be no different than if you had gone there directly.

If you (or your friends and family) plan to shop at Amazon anyway, please get in the habit of doing it in this way that helps Kol Ami at no additional cost to you.

Frequently Asked QuestionsQ: Will this change the price of my Amazon order?A: No. Your purchase price at Amazon is the same regardless of whether you enter the Amazon site through the Sinai website’s link or go there directly. But by entering Amazon each time through the Sinai website’s link, Amazon will pay a percentage of your purchase price to Sinai as a type of advertising commission.

Q: Will this change anything about the ordering process on Amazon.com?A: No. Once you get to the Amazon site from our website’s link, everything is the same: you browse Amazon’s site and enter your ordering information directly onto Amazon’s secure site. Everything happens through Amazon.com — Kol Ami has no access or involvement in your purchase or payment. The Kol Ami website merely refers you to Amazon and tells Amazon that you have been sent from our site so that Kol Ami can receive its percentage payment from Amazon.

Q: Will Kol Ami be able to track my personal purchases if I participate?A: No. Kol Ami will not know the personal identity of those who click on our Amazon link, and we will not receive any information regarding what items a particular person purchased. In order to confirm the amount of advertising commission that Kol Ami receives, Kol Ami will have access to an aggregate list of the items purchased through its Amazon link; however, that list will not contain any information regarding the identity of the purchaser. Amazon.com’s own privacy policies are available on the Amazon.com website.

Q: Shouldn’t Congregation Kol Ami be encouraging members to support local merchants, rather than online sellers?A: Kol Ami's participation in this program should not be viewed as discouraging members from shopping locally. However, we realize that many members engage in online shopping — particularly with Amazon.com. This program allows those members who already shop online to do so in a way that benefits Kol Ami, with no additional cost to themselves.